After participating in PSA/NSA/GSS conventions in other countries (e.g. the Netherlands and the USA) before, I thought it might be a good idea to sign up for the PSAUK convention in London.

So, I went there last weekend and met with “the biggest collection of like minded of missfits” (as @SeanWeafer call us, and he’s right ;-)), who happen to be members of the same club, the PSA UK and could not be easily put into a certain box.

Here are 10 of my takeaways from this amazing event:

Become a member of a MasterMind group. Bring like minded people together. Build great relationships and close friendships, allow to grow together, both professionally and personally.

Humour sells! I am going to incorporate more humour in my talks and training sessions.

You can not replace time. Of course, I knew this already, but it was great to be reminded of it again. It got me focused again on what’s really important.

“I am a professional speaker, not a public speaker.” Makes a subtle difference at first, but it is a big differentiator!

“I save the world from mediocre presentations”. By constantly investing in new techniques, reprogramming myself, I stay ahead of the curve. By sharing my Genius Shortcuts for Speakers, I actively contribute to make them better speakers too!

The crisis never ends, it’s a permanent crisis! If it’s not the economy, then it is the wars, the elections, a merger, etc. There is always some crisis going on. Keep that in mind! A couple of one liners: “If you wait, it will be too late!” and “If you snooze, you loose!”

It’s about R.O.E. or Return on Engagement. How to make your Social Media measurable? A lot of people have no idea what the impact of Social Media is. Luckily, we have developed one for LinkedIn (Ask me ;-)) already!

How do you make dolphins jump? Fish! It’s all about the fish…which dolphin gets which fish? Different for every dolphin. So, what kind of fish do your customers want? Do you really know? How do you find out?

One word will destroy all the empathy: BUT. If you use this word all the Know, Like & Trust you have built up so far, is completely lost again. “Yes, your presentation was really fantastic, BUT…” Remember that most people will not remember what was actually said before the “BUT”.

We are messengers of change! Standing on the platform is not a privilege, we earned it along our way. We did something right, otherwise we would not be standing here on stage! We do have something to say. And what we say will bring change…

These 10 takeaways are just one of the many things that were worthwhile visiting the PSAUK convention. I have met a number of great people, great speakers and new friends. And it is always fantastic to be surrounded by like minded people. They understand what it is that we do, what experiences we have, our pitfalls and our successes. I truly recommend it to any (aspiring) speaker!

“I’ll be back!” 😉What did you learn? Or what is the first thing you want to apply? Let’s hear it!